1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cutting element for a rotary cutting machine comprising a multiplicity of adjacent cutting members each of which is intended, during cutting, to rotate about an upwardly directed respective axis, said cutting element comprising:
an active zone intended to cut plants, and
a connecting zone intended to connect said cutting element to a support of a respective one of said cutting members of said machine.
2. Discussion of the Background
A cutting element such as this is already known to those skilled in the art. Specifically, document WO 99/18769 describes a disk mower equipped with blades each comprising:
a substantially flat first end with a hole for pivotally connecting said blade to a shaft formed at the periphery of the respective disk of the mower,
an also substantially flat second end equipped with two cutting edges, and
a connecting zone connecting the first end and the second end,
the first end and the second end lying in respective planes which are substantially parallel and offset one with respect to the other.
One of the specific features of this known blade lies in the fact that the connecting zone has a substantially chevron-shaped profile, the purpose of which is to increase the bending strength of said blade.
Those skilled in the art know, from experience, that the wear on a cutting element during work causes the cutting edge to shift gradually toward the vertical mid-plane of said cutting element. On this known blade, said gradual shift means that the part of the cutting edge located in the connecting zone moves back up along the slope of the chevron. The part of the cutting edge located at the second end for its part remains in a plane substantially parallel to the ground. In consequence, as soon as wear begins, the cutting height along one and the same blade no longer remains uniform, which results in a quality of work which very quickly deteriorates.
The object of the present invention is to overcome this drawback while allowing the cutting element to retain increased bending strength.
To this end, the cutting element of the present invention which comprises:
a first zone known as the active zone which extends at one end of said cutting element and which is intended to cut plants, and
a second zone known as the connecting zone which extends at the other end of said cutting element and which is intended to connect said cutting element to the support of the respective cutting member,
wherein the connecting zone has, in cross section:
a relatively flat central part,
a first edge inclined toward one side of a plane of extension of said central part, and
a second edge inclined toward the other side of said plane of extension.
This profile with inclined edges gives the cutting element remarkable bending stiffness. The active zone, which is relatively flat, contains the entirety of the cutting edge(s). In spite of the inevitable progression of wear, the cutting height remains substantially uniform across the entire length of the cutting element.